


Those Within

by GrimmVertigo



Series: We Are As Gods [1]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Alternate Universe, Astrals!AU, Awakening Powers, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Noctis as the Infernian, Nyx as the Glacian
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-17
Updated: 2017-10-17
Packaged: 2019-01-18 13:02:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12388623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GrimmVertigo/pseuds/GrimmVertigo
Summary: "Are you insinuating that I'm the monster that almost destroyed the Six, reborn as a mortal?" Noctis asks. He struggles to keep a tremble from his voice, staring down his father with his head held high. Regis closes his eyes and looks defeated.





	Those Within

**Author's Note:**

> I had a 6-page word document of plot written out for this. 
> 
> This snippet has no place in the plot I wrote. 
> 
>   _sigh_

"The Infernian? What are you talking about?" 

Noctis stands in the middle of the throne room, his friends at his back, his father and the council towering above. He feels his hands begin to flare with a familiar heat, and they clench into fists in an attempt to tamper down the power. Regis just stares down with a sympathetic expression, like it pains him to even be there. 

"Noctis..." The King sighs, and for a moment he looks so much older than his mere fourty-three years. "The Draconian cast Ifrit down to the mortal world after his uprising against Solheim, cursed to be reborn as one of us. It has... It has come to my attention that you have been exhibiting powers of a similar nature." 

There are startled gasps from the council, surprised inhales from the friends at his back. The Glaive to his left has no vocal response, but instead places a hand on Noctis's shoulder. It's a heavy, comforting weight, seems to send a chill through him that combats the heat that rises up within his core. He takes a deep breath and clenches his hands harder, to the point where they shake and go pale. 

"Are you insinuating that I'm the monster that almost destroyed the Six, reborn as a mortal?" Noctis asks. He struggles to keep a tremble from his voice, staring down his father with his head held high. "You would accuse your own son of this?" 

Regis closes his eyes and looks defeated. "If only I did not have to, Noct. But this is not a subject that can simply be swept aside." 

Noctis tears his eyes from the King and looks around the room. The Council sits in the wings to either side of Regis; all of them stare down accusatorily at him. One of them rises from their seat. 

"I would request proof be brought forth, Your Majesty." 

Regis nods and raises his hand, making a 'come forth' gesture. A Crownsguard from by the door steps forward. He pulls out a phone when he reaches the top of the first set of steps, holds it up and slowly waves it around for the Council to see. Noctis doesn't know what's on the phone, but the shocked and appalled gasps and murmurs that rise up tell him more than enough. When Regis's gaze turns sad, Noctis knows he's lost whatever this 'trial' is. 

When the Council redirects their attention to stare at him again, he takes a couple steps back. He's shaking his head in denial, chest starting to heave as his lungs work harder to get air. There's an iron grip around his heart that he distantly recognizes as panic, but there's nothing to be done about it. 

Nyx's hand is no longer a cool presence at his shoulder. The heat burns hotter and rushes through his limbs, overtaking everything. The unsettled murmuring of the Council turns to enraged shouts as they stand and point at him. Noctis raises his hands, trying to be unassuming and not threatening. But then he sees that his hands are _on fire_ and freezes. He inhales deeply, fully prepared to scream in shock and denial. 

But then Nyx is in front of him. He's in Noctis's space and has Noctis's hands in his and he's doing something to calm the flames but Noct doesn't know what. He can't do anything but stare at their joined hands, body tense and ready to run. 

"Look at me, little Prince," Nyx says, and his voice is weirdly clear for being in such a loud room. It rings in Noct's ears and drowns out everything else, and he can't help but look up to Nyx's face. The Glaive smiles when he has his attention. "That's good, Noct. That's good, just focus on me, okay? Ignore everything else." 

Somewhere in the background, there's a loud bang and more yelling. Noct registers his friends moving to circle around him and Nyx; Gladio stands with his shield and sword ready to his right, Prompto at his left with a gun drawn, Ignis at Nyx's back with a pair of daggers in his hands. He starts to look away from Nyx to see what's going on, but Nyx just moves back into Noctis's vision. 

" _Noctis_." The Glaive's voice is commanding, snaps Noct's eyes back to his face, back to a pair of icy blue eyes that seem like they hold a soft, chilly glow. "Listen to me, Noct. Listen to me, okay? I need you to focus on me, pay attention to me and nothing else. Can you do that?" 

Noctis frowns as he's suddenly pulled to the heat in his chest, the uncomfortable feeling of fire in his veins as it radiates from his torso and down his limbs. It's making his head hurt, has him suddenly sweating as it intensifies. He clenches his eyes shut and ducks his head down, trying to curl up like he used to when he was sick and felt yucky. Nyx's cold hands on his face make him stop. 

"Noctis! Snap out of it!" Nyx's voice rings through his head and the sounds of a verbal fight fade into white noise. "Don't let it control you! You're better than your flames!" 

Behind his closed eyes, all Noctis can see is fire, a raging blaze that burns hot and bright and it sends an arrow of fear straight through him. Nyx's voice fades into the white noise, replaced with a sinister cackling laugh that has him whimpering. The flames coalesce into a vaguely humanoid figure, and Noctis finds that the longer he stares at it, the worse his headache gets. The laughter echoes around him again as the flaming figure starts coming closer, reaches out a hand and beckons to him. A stream of fire licks across his face and Noctis screams, squeezing his eyes shut and throwing his arms up to ward against it. 

He expects to feel more pain, to have the flaming silhouette overtake his body and hurt him or kill him. But instead he feels a sudden rush of cold and shivers. His arms are slowly brought down from his face, and it takes a moment for Noctis to realize that someone's guiding them down. There's a familiar cold pressure around his wrists as his arms are lowered to his sides. A second later, the cold slides up to the space just above his elbows and something chilly presses against his forehead. 

Noctis opens his eyes to an icy blue gaze and pure, pale skin, the only mark being a small arrow high on a left cheekbone. His breath appears before him in a soft cloud and he's suddenly aware of how _cold_ it is as a shiver runs through his body. The heat from before is still there, but it's muted, gone from a raging wildfire to a soft fireplace flame. 

He releases a breath he didn't know he'd been holding and sits back, vaguely wondering when he'd ended up on his knees on the floor. In front of him is Nyx. Or, who he _thinks_ is Nyx? The man in front of him looks like a negative copy of the Glaive, tanned skin gone a soft pale blue, ashy black hair bleached a startling platinum gray. His Kingsglaive uniform is gone, instead replaced with a sheer flowing cloth that drapes over his shoulders and tucks into a belt at his waist, his modesty covered with a solid blue skirt that has high slits running up his thighs. 

This new Nyx lets out a breathless, relieved laugh when Noctis makes eye contact. His hands come up to Noct's shoulders, one of them sliding up his neck to his cheek. The look he gets is nothing short of adoration and it both confuses and surprises him. It takes Noct a second to find his voice. 

"Wh-why are you blue...?" 

There's a rough chuckle from somewhere above him and to the right. "That's the first thing you ask? Really, Princess?" 

Noctis frowns and looks up to see Gladio towering over him, arms crossed. Looking around, in fact, he discovers that he and Nyx are surrounded by people – Prompto and Ignis standing behind Nyx, Clarus and Cor standing to their right, Regis leaning heavily on his cane directly to Noct's left. They all wear looks of relief and worry, and it makes Noctis uneasy. 

"Well, that was a confirmation if I've ever seen one," Cor says with an exhausted sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose. 

"Told us more than we needed to know, really." Clarus has his chin in his hand, a contemplative frown furrowing his brows. "The Infernian reborn _and_ the Glacian, housed in the Citadel for twenty years." He turns his gaze from Noctis to Regis. "The press will have a field day with this, Majesty." 

"I am confident I can keep this situation under wraps, Your Majesty," Ignis pipes up. 

Regis waves a hand dismissively. "We will worry about logistics later. I am more concerned about my son." 

Noctis looks up at his dad. "I'm fine," he says immediately. But then he frowns and turns his gaze away. "I mean, I think I'm fine? I _feel_ mostly fine." He really does, with the fire in his veins having calmed into something almost pleasant, and he's positive the two cold hands at his shoulders are helping. "Nyx is helping," Noctis says in a soft voice. 

Nyx, in turn, smiles, and takes Noctis's hands into his own. Noctis lets him, even grips back after a few moments and gives the Glaive a smile of his own. There's something there between them, something unspoken and _old_ , but he knows it'll have to wait until later. Judging from the scorch marks on the floors and the nearby walls, there's work to be done. 

Noctis sighs and drops his head. "I didn't hurt anyone, did I?" 

"Nobody was injured, no," Regis says from somewhere above. "Sir Ulric was instrumental in assisting with that. Though I expect a full report on this whole mess later." His tone is accusatory, but Noctis knows what his dad sounds like when he's mad, and this isn't it. 

"Of course, Your Majesty," Nyx replies as he gets to his feet, gently tugging Noctis up with him, never once breaking skin contact. "After Noctis gets some rest, of course. The flames of the Infernian are never kind." 

Regis nods and waves a hand out, gesturing to the door. Nyx wraps an arm around Noctis's shoulders and leads him out of the room, pausing whenever he stumbles or can't quite get his feet to work properly. It's embarrassing, because Nyx's chilly aura is distracting and it's making it hard for Noctis to keep his head on right. He gets increasingly more and more tired the farther they get, and at one point they have to stop so Nyx can heft the Prince up into his arms, cradling him against his chest. 

The silky softness of the sheer cloth draped around Nyx's torso has Noctis letting out an appreciative hum as he nuzzles his cheek into the fabric. It smells clean and crisp, like fresh snow and ice. 

"You'll explain everything when I wake up, right?" Noctis asks sleepily, a yawn punctuating the last half of his sentence. 

"I will," Nyx answers. 

"Will you still be blue?" 

The Glaive chuckles, the sound rumbling deep in his chest. "Probably not. But I'll still be at your side." 

"Promise?" Noctis looks up at Nyx through half-lidded eyes, heavy with sleep. When Nyx looks down at him, a halo of white hair framing his face, Noctis swears it's the most beautiful thing he's ever seen. 

Nyx leans down and presses a soft kiss to Noct's forehead. "I promise, little Prince." 

"That's good," Noctis says quietly, one of his hands fisting a handful of the sheer cloth Nyx is wearing. "I think you're the only thing keeping the fire from coming back..." 

"It's-" Nyx cuts himself off and sighs. He steps into an elevator and jabs at the number for Noctis's floor with his elbow. "It'll get easier, eventually... I'll be there to help." 

Nyx doesn't tell him how the fires are only the beginning. He doesn't say anything about the memories that will start coming back. He doesn't bring up how scared he is of that moment, because the memories are _everything_ ; they're powerful and terrible and there's a chance that they could overpower everything else and turn _Noctis_ into _Ifrit_. 

No, Nyx doesn't say anything else, just tightens his grip on Noctis and shoulders his way into the Prince's rooms. He pulls Noct's shoes and jacket off before putting him to bed and doesn't hesitate to crawl under the covers with him. It doesn't take long for Noct to wriggle into Nyx's arms, and the Glacian lets him, pressing a kiss to messy black hair. 

As they lay there, Nyx swears to himself to never let the Prince out of his sight, to never let his sweet little Prince revert back into the temperamental beast he once was.

**Author's Note:**

>  Comments and kudos are appreciated! Thanks for reading!~


End file.
